LONDON: Jack Harrison, who survived the Great Escape plot by Allied prisoners in a German prison in World War II, has died at age 97, his family said.

As a camp gardener, Harrison helped dispose of the dirt excavated from three escape tunnels. He was 98th on the list of some 200 inmates designated to make the escape on March 24, 1944 from Stalag Luft III prison near Sagan in Germany  now Zagan, Poland. Only 76 got away before guards detected the breakout.

The breakout was celebrated in the 1963 film 'The Great Escape.' Only three men managed to reach safety. Hitler ordered the execution of 50 recaptured escapers, and 23 were returned to custody. Harrison was the last survivor of the plot.

"I guess it was a blessing in disguise I never made it through, as most were shot," he said last year. Harrison said he quickly returned into his prison when the escape was detected.

Charles Bronson’s character (a russian guy) and another guy he was with, both took a small boat and sailed away to a larger boat, where they either stowed aboard or became part of the crew. A third guy took a bicycle and pedaled into the swiss alps.

12
posted on 06/08/2010 5:52:17 PM PDT
by Secret Agent Man
(I'd like to tell you, but then I'd have to kill you.)

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